Lisa C. Morgan's Blog: Lisa's ramblings & such

We are down to the final few days until PHOENIX RISING is released!! I'm so excited! And now I can share with those who may not already know, there's a party!!

The online Facebook Release Party for PHOENIX RISING is just under ONE WEEK AWAY! I can’t begin to say enough thank yous to all who have RSVPed to attend. If you haven’t yet- come on over & say you’ll join us!

The launch party is July 18th at 7 pm on its event page (link below)! There will be give a ways, including copies (both ebook & paperbacks), bookmarks, some original tank tops, and of course- the official HENNING FAMILY SIGIL necklace! And that brings us to the next order of business…

I’ve had great feedback on the sigil necklace- many folks asking how to get their hands on one for themselves! Well, bad news first- the sigil necklace WILL be available at the cafepress shop, but not until Mid August when the shop is (if I may quote the Imperial Forces) “fully operational”. That leads us to the good news- one of these necklaces is up for grabs during the release party!

How can you win it? Oh…this is the fun part (and why I’m telling you all about it now… to give you time)! On the party event wall, post a photo of yourself (or a loved one) doing something Phoenix or Fire related… okay, sounds tricky, but I want to see creativity! Maybe your niece looked adorable in a fireman’s hat? Maybe you have a stuffed Fawkes that you could put somewhere, doing something interesting? Really, ANYTHING GOES! (ok... nothing dirty!) Feel free to use a photo editing software program if you wish! The only stipulation is there MUST be at least ONE HUMAN in the picture, too! Post you pictures by 8:30 pm on the 18th. The best one wins!

Invite your friends to join me and others as we celebrate the book’s release!

(for those not aware of how a Facebook Release Party works, I posted a note on my personal & author pages about it to explain!)

Head on over and say you'll join me! And I can’t wait to see how creative some of you can be! (for more information about the book, please visit maggiehenningandtherealm.weebly.com )

http://www.facebook.com/events/480038...

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! The June edition of WHAT'S CIRCLING CELINE is available NOW!
This month, I have a fantastic interview with fellow author Brenda Hastings, whose book, OUR FORBIDDEN LOVE, is available NOW!
After the votes were calculated, the June Character of the month is the much anticipated PRINCE MICHEL of CELINE!
Also, the June code word, the official playlist, AND the sigil reveal!
BUT HOLD THE PHONE!! You thought I'd stop there?
Because June is such a busy month for us all, I felt we should take a few minutes and reward ourselves. So, as my gift... I have included in the online edition of WCC, the FIRST TWO CHAPTERS OF PHOENIX RISING!!
Did you miss a code word? Well, you will find out on the website about a 24 HOURS ONLY CODE WORD REVEAL DAY coming up in July...

Hop on over there... check it out! Send your family, your friends...heck, send your enemies if you want to! And as always, HAPPY READING!
~LCM

http://whatscirclingceline.weebly.com/

Good Saturday GoodReaders!

It's the second day of June and a rather glum looking day here at The Castle Morgan, so I'm using the gray skies and raining weather to do a little writing.

For the first time, I am participating in Camp NaNoWriMo. For those unfamiliar with this, in the more simplistic way I can tell you, it's one month to write a book of 50,000 words.

I thought, "Hey Lisa- you finished the third Maggie Henning book, how about you give this a try?"

I love me a challenge :-)

There is no set theme or genre for NaNoWriMo and no limit to how many words you write a day (although I have set my bar pretty low- at least 1700 words a day) so i decided to take this test to another level.

I shall be participating in this, but to make it a little more complex than merely the number of words, I have decided to write outside of the genre I typically work in.

The story I'm working on is a romantic comedy with NOTHING PARANORMAL! I know what you're thinking- "Holy Smokes! How did Lisa get away from vampires and witches and monsters? (of course you also ended that question with the obligatory 'oh my!') And there in lies part of the challenge for me.

I wanted this to be a test, a real test. I wanted to push myself into writing something I wouldn't normally do. This exercise is for enjoyment. maybe the tale will stink like a horse barn in August- who's to say? But maybe not.

I'm 36 hours into the camp, and sitting at 4,685 words... not too shabby to start with. I thought I'd share the first little snippet of the story here, and i will blog about the experience as I go.

Are you participating in Camp NaNoWriMo this month? If so, or if you have in the past, what are your thoughts about the experience? I'd love to hear!

So, here is the opening of FOR GLORY'S SAKE, my challenge work for Camp NaNoWriMo.

And as ever- HAPPY READING!
~LCM



Tony swings the rusted ‘83 Ford Escort hatchback, sans muffler, into the pitted driveway. The car doesn’t automatically cease running because he turns the ignition off. It more or less shudders itself into dying, shaking as if it’s a wet Lab. He uses his shoulder, forcing the stubborn death trap into freeing him. Once more, Tony kisses his Saint Christopher’s medallion while he lifts and slams the door closed.
“That necklace is only going to keep you safe for so long. Eventually, even Jesus is gonna laugh at that piece of shit you drive,”

Hey everyone. I’m hoping you are all having a great day? I’m trying, given the time of the year and all… I thought, for today, I’d write my blog post about Mother’s Day.

I’m a parent of three kids, as many of you already know. Being a Mom is, in fact, the toughest job I’ve ever had. I know, I know- that saying gets batted around frequently and because of that, I think many of us tend to let it fall on deaf ears.

This will be the first year in my many that I don’t send a charming card or overpriced flowers.

We all, I believe, think of our mom’s as invincible. Mom is the one who will scold our poor behavior; spouting off about how utterly disappointed they are in our grades/attitude/choices and then in the next breath, be the one to give us a hug and let us know it will all be okay. Mom washed away both the dirt and the tears, she read us our favorite stories and found the calculator to help figure out the algebra homework, even when she would rather have been watching “her stories”.

Moms give up so much when they make the transition for woman to so very much more. Mom isn’t a title to be thrown around lightly, either. One doesn’t become “Mom” simply by getting pregnant then forcing a child from her body.

Nope- Mom means you rock in a chair at 3 am when you just did it an hour before, a yawn and a bottle in hand; a smile on her lips and a soft hum of some nameless tune. Mom means you’ve traded away many of those wine infested play dates for juice boxes at the park.

Mom translates to a thousand miles in a van on empty so you can kick a soccer ball around and be one of the several kids to proudly wave their trophy. Mom means you decorate every free wall with Crayola drawings of horses and monster trucks, and Mom means free time disappears, replaced by parent conferences and balanced dinners that if you were really good, ended with brownies.

Mom equals a knight that fights off the monsters in the closet, the nurse who gives you medicine when you’re ill, the social worker who talks it all out with you, and then the housekeeper who mucks up the puke when the medicine doesn’t work- often times while telling you who bad she feels that you feel bad.

Moms don’t give up the title when you leave, either. A mom is the one person who you call in the middle of the night because your English Professor said your term paper was awful. Mom is the person you run to first to show off the big (or tiny) diamond that was just placed on your finger with a promise for the future.

Mom is the person you want at your side when you transition from woman to Mom… and even after the hurtful words and all of your eye rolls, she becomes the only person whose shoes you hope to fill.

I used to cringe when someone told me “You sound just like your Mother.” In these last few months, the one’s following my mother’s passing, I’ve realized that for every time someone told me that, they’d grossly overestimated my abilities, for I could never sound like her…not even close.

My Mom was the best. You may argue that, but in my eyes, I’ll win every time.

Happy Mother’s Day,
~LCM

Good Morning GoodReaders,

After finishing the latest Southern Vampire Mysteries book DEADLOCKED, and leaving my review, I started to give a thought as to books becoming movies or tv series. I thought I'd share my opinions/observations about this trend.

Anyone who knows me at all knows I'm a HUGE True Blood fan (the HBO series) and I don't attempt to disguise that. As many know, the series is based on the hugely successful Southern Vampire Mysteries books by Charlaine Harris.

I view the television show and the books as separate entities. I think, personally, that's the only way I keep myself from not ripping out my hair when the show deviates from the storylines in the books.

Lately, it seems that more and more producers for both movie and television media are turning to books as source material. Yes, this isn't new, but it seems to becoming more and more widely popular.

Yeah for books! On the positive, that translates to some pretty awesome writers and a whole lot of excellent reading. On the flip side, what is a die hard fan of a book series to do when the producers shift or change or (gulp) omit things that were in the original book?

One that really bothered me- The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. My youngest wanted to see the film. I have a house rule- You want to see the show/film, READ THE BOOK FIRST! She, and I, read the entire series and loved it! However, when we sat in the dark theater, sucking down our slurpies and munching the tub of popcorn, the film...well, you've probably seen it. Things were changed, omitted, even a few characters weren't as depicted in the books. When we left the theater, Haley & I agreed-
We totally could have gone out for pizza instead of spending the cash to see the film.

I think we all would love to see our favorite books made into tv or movie series. It isn't so much about how cool it would be as much as it's about our love of the series and wanting more. Let's face it- our favorite books take time to be written, edited, then published. That's why we love them so much. We're desperate to see Eric or Damon or Tyrion Lannister every week.

And let's face it- not every book could be a film or show and do it justice. The Black Dagger Brotherhood, for instance. YES! Love me my V and Rhev, but could those characters translate and still keep those qualities that make the brothers what we love? Probably not.

Some books, I feel, would translate GREAT in to television shows. The Morganville Vampires books by Rachel Caine, for example. Young characters and books that keep moving; plots that change up each book but still keep the same charm as the previous book. I think this series would be as successful, maybe more, than my beloved Vampire Diaries.

Christopher farnsworth's Nathaniel cade series would make an EXCELLENT film franchise because it has a little of everything one could want- mystery, light romance, adventure- this is made for the big screen.(Could we get this done, btw?)

Not every book should become a film or tv series. We need to not substitute quality for quantity. If we had of favorites every time we turned around, eventually, they would cease to become our favorites.

Well, I suppose I'll stop here for fear of carrying on forever. I'm curious- any books you think would not make a good show or film? feel free to leave them in the comments sections!

And as always- HAPPY READING!
~LCM

So I thought today I’d blog a little about reviews.
I finished reading a book last night by an author I adore. However, the book? Uhhh…yeah. Not her best piece of work. As I sat to write a review of it, a panic shot through my chest, a cold sweat broke over my brow… I bit my nails and let my fingers hover over the keyboard.
Why? Simply put- do I fib and pronounce how wonderful the book was? How I was so engaged and invested? Or, do I write what I really thought?
For the “outside” person (a reader), this probably seems like an easy choice- write what you thought, but as an author myself; that dreaded bad review forever looming over my head…
So, what is one to do? Here’s what I did:
I wrote what I really thought of the book in a respectful manner.
Any author, in fact anyone who is brave enough to put their work out there for the world to read, should be commended. It isn’t an easy thing to do even if it may seem like it. You have to know that every word you type, each misspelling and twist in the plot, will be read, scrutinized, and quite possibly torn apart by someone you’ve never meant. That is daunting, but the author deserves your honest opinion.
When I tried the self pub route with my first book, I had good reviews, thankfully, but the reviewers also pointed out a few things they would have liked to see differently. Upon first reading the reviews, I swallowed hard, took a shot of Jager, grabbed a spoon and a pint of Mint Chip, and hid from my laptop for two days.
When I mustered the courage to go back and read them again, I took notes. I went back to my story and checked what the reviewers had mentioned.
You know what? They had some good points…
For myself, I had to change the way I look at reviews. Not just for my books, but for books I’ve read. I’m in the minority and don’t choose to read or not read a book based on reviews, but as I said, I’m the minority in this. Reviews can make or break a book.
Reviews can be a great resource for authors. Even the “perfect” story in your own mind can leave some saying “what the hell was she thinking?” While I think it’s important to tell “your story”, I think you also need to take into account the readers- the folks who are going to take a chance and spend a little money to read your work. Your story becomes as much their story at that point.
Reviews can help an author improve their writing. Even the best writers and editors will miss things from time to time. Little things or sometimes (gulp!) glaring plot errors and issues with continuity.
Another MAJOR item to remember- a review is, in its most simple form, one person’s opinion of your work. My Mom used to tell me you can’t please everybody. Okay, I get it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to try.
For readers who leave reviews, let me let you in on a little secret that authors may not want you to know- writers, we have feelings, too. I know I know- “What? No you don’t! You spill it all out on the page!”
Well, my empty bottle of Jagermeister begs to differ with that.
When you write a review, try to bear in mind that authors that do read them (and some don’t) are typically looking to see a few things- Did my readers enjoy the tale? What can I improve on?
If you need to criticize something, do it in a respectful way. Something didn’t work for you? OK, what was it and why didn’t it work for you? An author can use that type of review to look back and see what was jumbled. The story's in their brain and probably made perfect sense to them at the time, but maybe the delivery could have been better.
Author’s really do respect their readers. We want you to enjoy the reading experience. Putting out a negative review just to “bash” an author…not.cool. That’s being a bully and no one likes a bully.
My advice- when you write a review for a book, whether you loved it or loathed it, remember- you aren’t the only person who will read the story. Your issues may be the same as someone else’s or not. Tell the author what you thought, but do it in a way that is kind. Writing “Your book sucked!” yeah, that really won’t help. If you give a starred review, maybe offer why you gave it the number of stars you did.
Well, I guess that’s it for now. Reviews can be incredibly useful if done in a positive way. Let’s all play nice, shall we?

HAPPY READING!
~LCM

WOW!! Talk about "taking a break"...my last blog post was in March! ugg...need to get better at this...

A little news- the first What's Circling Celine newsletter has been posted, including the first "code word" for the PHOENIX RISING RELEASE GIVE-A-WAY!! If you haven't checked it out yet, the website is http://whatscirclingceline.weebly.com
Also at the site, I've included an author Q & A, a character interview, a post related to fellow author Crystal ward's upcoming release TSUNAMI which is the second installment in her Supernova Saga! I'm really looking forward to this one folks! Please feel free to contact me with stuff you'd like to see included in the newsletter, too and don't forget to vote on May's Character of the Month! The April Newsletter with code word #1 will be up until May 17th. Help spread the word and enter!

I've read a few pretty great books since my last post here! Let's begin with LOVER REBORN by JR Ward! I attended her signing in Cincinnati with a couple of friends and to say it was fantastic is a gross underestimation! Ward's Q & A session was terrific, too!

I recently stumbled on the HUSH, HUSH series by Becca Fitzpatrick. WOW!! I read the first 3 books in 3 days and am very eager for the final book in October! Fans of YA or of Angels/Fallen Angels would really dig this series.

The new Kerrilyn Sparks book- WANTED: UNDEAD OR ALIVE was another installment of her Immortals After Dark series. Phineas Phineas Phineas...how I love you...

I also read Julie Kagawa's newest book- THE IMMORTAL RULES. I gave it 3 or 4 stars. A decent read and I will read the next one. As it was a new series, I expected there to be some world building. I'd hoped for it to move at a little faster pace. Not a terrible read though...

I'm currently reading DEADLOCKED by Charlaine Harris. This is the latest release in her Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries series. I'm 40% through it and I'm reserving judgement until I finish it.

Still on my kindle and begging to be read- RED, WHITE AND BLOOD by Christopher Farnsworth. It's taking EVERY OUNCE OF DETERMINATION on my part to keep myself from locking the world away and digging in to the newest Nathanial Cade book.
Also on the kindle, awaiting my eager eyes, is the newest Morganville Vampires book, BLACK DAWN. Can't wait to dive into this one, too!

My release date for the MAGGIE HENNING & THE REALM: book 1 PHOENIX RISING is drawing ever closer... I grow a little more anxious with every passing day! I've been hard at work on "swag packs" to offer to reviewers. If you would be interested, feel free to email me at [email protected]
The release will be in mid-July and I will have swag packs and some ebook ARCs available shortly before.

As always, please check out my fellow FIREFLY AND WISP authors. Of particular note this month, TR STAMPZ new book HOT RIDEZ is out now! A nice 3 story collection of erotica! make sure to bring a cool cloth- these are some H.O.T. stories! As I noted above, Crystal ward's latest book TSUNAMI will be out this month. If you haven't read the first installment SUPERNOVA, you really should! A great book!
If tales of horror are more your cup pf tea, make sure to grab a copy of Joseph Rubas' POCKETFUL OF FEAR! 41 tales in one book! I suggest reading them during the daylight hours! ;-)

Well then, i think that's quite a bit for now! Tomorrow, i think I'll hop on a blog about something totally random...I'm open to suggestions? LOL !

have a great day Goodreaders and as always,
HAPPY READING!
~LCM

Good Morning Goodreads-ers!

This Saturday, once known for the celebration of St. Patrick, will now be known as "Z Day"!

That's right! A THORN OF DEATH, the zombie themed anthology from FIREFLY & WISP PUBLISHING will be unleashing the virus 3/17/2012!

This collection of zombie themed stories, written by 13 different authors, is sure to give even the most discerning Walker Lovers something they'll love!

With authors, including Dawn Jayne (of UPRISING), Lee Taylor (of Bound) and foreward written by the fantastic Joe Rubas (Pocketful of Fear)this will be a collection that even the UNDEAD couldn't pass up!

One of my short stories, ANTIDOTE, is included in this anthology, too. It is a humbling thing to have a story selected for inclusion alongside these 12 unbelievably talented authors!

A THORN OF DEATH is already posted here at Goodreads... why not add it and give it a read?

I will be posting a little tease from my story, ANTIDOTE, in a blog post here later today, as well as a little background to the story's creation...

Have a Happy Thursday Everyone!
~LCM

Let’s spread the word!

The website is up and running… have you checked it out yet?
http://maggiehenningandtherealm.weebl...

Beginning in April, the monthly newsletter, What’s Circling Celine, will begin going out to subscribers and what better way to begin the exciting series than a fantastic contest?

What goes better with a Phoenix than Fire? THAT’S RIGHT! One lucky person will win a KINDLE FIRE!! For details on this contest, jump on over to the website!! And with 5 prizes up for grabs, how’s that for chances to win awesome swag?

This is VERY EXCITING for me as an author and I hope the readers out there will be equally as excited!! Please, check out the website, how about a like to my author page, too, while you’re at it? And please, feel free to share!
~LCM



****contest details****

GRAND PRIZE (one): a Kindle Fire, free ebook copy of Phoenix Rising, but wait…that’s not even everything…
The lucky winner will ALSO RECIEVE free ebook copies of every MAGGIE HENNING AND THE REALM book published! (book 2- Phoenix Burning will be released in September and book 3 will be out next year) AND any short stories relating to The Realm! FOREVER!! NEVER HAVE TO PURCHASE THEM AGAIN!! How cool is that?!

SECOND PLACE PRIZE (one): (you didn’t think I could stop at only one prize, did you?) Second place prize will be FREE EBOOK COPIES of all the Maggie Henning and The Realm books written (including any short stories) FOREVER! Just like the first place prize, this is for all upcoming releases!

THIRD PLACE (one): A PHOENIX RISING prize pack (signed paperback copy, bookmark pack, AND a HENNING FAMILY SIGIL necklace)

FOURTH PLACE (two given away): a PHOENIX RISING prize pack (free ebook copy of Phoenix Rising and bookmark pack)



*How to win*

1. Subscribe to the WHAT’S CIRCLING CELINE newsletter. (first issue will be emailed in April of 2012 and you can sign up at the website!)

2. Read the newsletter. You’ll find a special section that gives you that month’s CODE WORD.

3. Collect the 4 code words (April, May, June, and July) July’s newsletter will tell you where to email in the code words to enter (and any details about user names…)

4. I will then post a video to youtube where I read off the user names of all the folks entered. (I’ll use the “user names for privacy reasons) and you will be able to watch as I drop the names in the hat. I will then draw names at random, starting with the 2 fourth place prizes, followed by the third, second, and grand prize! (I will also email the winners within 2 hours of the video going live)

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SHARE THIS INFORMATION WITH FRIENDS, FAMILIES AND GROUPS!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Happy Reading!
~LCM

Hello to the blog readers! I hope this March has found you in good spirits with too many books to read and not enough hours in the day!

I've been a bit scattered these past few weeks and dealing with some stuff, but now- I'M BAAACK! (you have been warned...)

A little news:
The website is up and running! You can find information about contests, giveaways, Realm related news, etc at the website! maggiehenningandtherealm.weebly.com

While you're there, why not sign up for the newsletter? It will include the most current information about the books, character spotlights/interviews, reviews...and who knows what else? oh yeah- CONTESTS!!

Worried about being inundated? NO WORRIES! The newsletter will be a monthly item sent to your email!

Release of PHOENIX RISING will be this JULY! How honored I feel to have joined the fantastic group of authors at FIREFLY & WISP PUBLISHING! Please, check out these authors! You want to talk GREAT stories? Look no further than FIREFLY & WISP!

The sequel, PHOENIX BURNING has been in the hands of betas and they seem to share a common theme- HOLY MOLY!! They have all LOVED the sequel...some even more than the first book! I'm very flattered that my "little story" was so well received! PHOENIX BURNING will be released September 23, 2012.

ALSO UPCOMING: my short zombie-themed story, ANTIDOTE, will be included in the anthology A THORN OF DEATH, out this St. Patrick's Day... while you're consuming your green beer & corned beef, why not pick up this anthology?

okay...I'm off! May your day be filled with words that take you someplace you've never been?

have a great one all!
~LCM